Moses Chunga has questioned the ages of the opponents his fresh-faced teenagers are facing at the COSAFA Under-17 Championships in Mauritius after the Young Warriors crashed to their second straight defeat yesterday.
Chunga selected a young team of schoolboys, which include some 15-year-olds, and they have found the going tough on the Indian Ocean island. Yesterday, the Young Warriors crashed to a comprehensive 0-5 defeat at the hands of Malawi after running out of steam in the second half.
Chunga had predicted, ahead of the match against the Malawians, his youthful team was in for a tough time because he feels they are playing against players who are far older.
Reports from Zambia have indicated that there are a number of over-aged players in the current squad representing the country in Mauritius. The Zambians were expelled from last year’s tournament because of age-cheating. And Chunga believes the cancer is still devouring the tourney.
“If you look at Malawi and Zambia they are like our players whom we left behind at home since they did not meet the criteria,’’ said Chunga.
“Their calves are heavily build, their physique and knowledge of football is more advanced.
“And you will see that, in this case, the Under-17 tournament merely becomes the name of the tournament.’’ Chunga said his players were also struggling to acclimatise.
“When we arrived last week it was raining and the following day the heat was unbearable, so many factors are contributing here and the players are failing to acclimatise,” he said.
“We are happy that the association has agreed to give these youngsters exposure which was lacking in the past years.’’ In Group B, Zambia are leading the pack with six points after they beat South Africa 3-2 on Sunday. The Herald
